Post on 24-Dec-2015
HotHot Topics in McKinney-Vento Topics in McKinney-Vento
“…“…Through it all, school is probably the only thing that Through it all, school is probably the only thing that has kept me going. I know that every day that I walk in has kept me going. I know that every day that I walk in those doors, I can stop thinking about my problems for those doors, I can stop thinking about my problems for
the next six hours and concentrate on what is most the next six hours and concentrate on what is most important to me. School keeps me motivated to move important to me. School keeps me motivated to move
on, and encourages me to find a better life for myself.” on, and encourages me to find a better life for myself.” Carrie, 2002 LeTendre ScholarCarrie, 2002 LeTendre Scholar
Plan for the DayPlan for the Day
• Identifying McKinney-Vento eligible students: why and how
• Title IA and McKinney-Vento: what and how
• BREAK• Unaccompanied youth: who and how• Preschool: where and how
Characteristics ofCharacteristics ofHigh-Performing SchoolsHigh-Performing Schools
• Clear and Shared Focus• High Standards and Expectations for All
Students• High Levels of Collaboration and
Communication• Supportive Learning Environment• High Levels of Family and Community
Involvement
McKinney-Vento Students:McKinney-Vento Students:Why and HowWhy and How
• Lack of affordable housing• Foreclosures
• Poverty• Economic recession• Unemployment
• Health problems• Domestic violence• Natural and other disasters
• How many children and youth do you think are homeless in your school district?
Eligibility—Who is CoveredEligibility—Who is Coveredby the McKinney-Vento Act?by the McKinney-Vento Act?
• Children who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including:• Sharing the housing of others due to loss
of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason• 79% of identified homeless children and youth
in Idaho• Where would you go if you couldn’t stay
here?• What led you to move into this situation?
• Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, camping grounds due to lack of adequate alternative accommodations[Motels: 4% of identified homeless children and youth in Idaho]
• Living in emergency or transitional shelters[12% of identified homeless children and youth in Idaho]
• Living in a public or private place not designed for humans to live
• Living in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings [5% of identified homeless children and youth in Idaho]
Eligibility— Eligibility— Who is Covered? (cont.)Who is Covered? (cont.)
• Migratory children living in above circumstances
• Awaiting foster care placement
Eligibility— Eligibility— Who is Covered? (cont.)Who is Covered? (cont.)
• Case-by-case, by the liaison• NCHE’s “Determining Eligibility” brief, available at:
www.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/det_elig.pdf
• Get as much information as possible• Avoid using the word “homeless”• Student Residency Questionnaire
http://center.serve.org/nche/forum/eligibility.php
Determining EligibilityDetermining Eligibility
How many children and youth How many children and youth experience homelessness?experience homelessness?
• 10% of all children living in poverty over the course of a year.
• Nationwide, 956,914 homeless students identified by public schools in the 2008-09 school year.
• 4,342 in Idaho in 2009-10• Up from 2,710 in 2008-09
• Now that you know the definition of “homeless”, do you have a different estimate of the number of homeless students in your school district?
Identifying McKinney-Vento Identifying McKinney-Vento students: Why?students: Why?
• It affects state and local funding.• It’s the law.
• It affects the services available to children and youth.• McKinney-Vento Act• Free meals• Title I, Part A• FAFSA• Head Start
Identification: How?Identification: How?
• Provide awareness activities for school staff.• Registrars and secretaries• Counselors and social workers• Nurses• Teachers• Truancy, attendance, and drop out prevention
specialists• Administrators• Bus drivers and school resource officers
Identification: How (cont.)Identification: How (cont.)
• Use a Student Residency Questionnaire.• Put up posters/flyers in schools and where
low-income families and youth may seek services.• http://center.serve.org/nche/products.php
• Collaborate with community agencies serving families and youth.
• Enlist youth to spread the word.• Collaborate with early childhood and
preschool providers for help.
Title I and Homelessness:Title I and Homelessness:What?What?
• A child or youth who is homeless is automatically eligible for Title IA services, regardless of whether his or her school is a Title IA school.
• School districts must set aside funds necessary to serve homeless children, especially those who do not attend Title IA schools.• Funds may be used to serve any homeless
student• Funds may be used for services not ordinarily
provided to other Title I students.
Title I and Homelessness:Title I and Homelessness:How?How?
• How to determine the amount of the set-aside?• Flat percentage• Review needs and costs involved in serving
homeless students in the current year and project for the following year.
• Multiply the number of homeless students by the Title IA per pupil allocation.
• Reserve a percentage based on the district’s poverty level or total Title IA allocation.
Title I and Homelessness:Title I and Homelessness:How?How?
• How can the set-aside be used?• Clothing, particularly if necessary to meet a
school’s dress or uniform requirement• Clothing and shoes necessary to participate in
physical education classes• Student fees that are necessary to participate
in the general education program• Personal school supplies such as backpacks
and notebooks• Birth certificates necessary to enroll in school• Immunizations• Food
How can the set-asidebe used? (cont)
• Medical and dental services• Eyeglasses and hearing aids• Counseling services • Outreach services • Extended learning time• Tutoring services• Parental involvement • Fees for AP and IB testing• Fees for SAT/ACT testing• GED testing for school-age students
Guiding the Use of Title IGuiding the Use of Title IFunds for Homeless StudentsFunds for Homeless Students
• Services must be reasonable and necessary to enable homeless students to take advantage of educational opportunities.
• Funds must be used as a last resource when funds or services are not reasonably available from other public or private sources.
• An individual paid, in whole or in part, with Title I, Part A funds, including Title I, Part A ARRA funds, may also serve as a homeless liaison.
Title I and HomelessnessTitle I and HomelessnessResourcesResources
• NCHE’s “Title I and Homelessness”
• http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/titlei.pdf
• September 2009 USED guidance on allowable uses for the Title IA/ARRA, section G-11
• http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/guidance/titlei-reform.pdf
Identification and Title I:Identification and Title I:Your Turn to Decide “How”Your Turn to Decide “How”
• Work through the scenario in your group, briefly (15 minutes)
• Large group discussion (15 minutes)
BREAKBREAK
• We will start a video 5 minutes before the end of the break, so please come in quietly.
• “My Own Four Walls” by Hear Us
Unaccompanied Youth:Who?
• Youth experiencing homelessness and not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian.
• Due to circumstances: family separation, parental incarceration, illness, hospitalization or death
• Due to abuse• 20-40% of unaccompanied youth were
sexually abused in their homes, while 40-60% were physically abused
• 21 – 53% of homeless youth have a history of child welfare placement
Unaccompanied Youth:Who? (cont)
• Due to family dysfunction• Over two-thirds of callers to Runaway Hotline
report that at least one of their parents abuses drugs or alcohol.
• Over half of youth living in shelters report that their parents either told them to leave, or knew they were leaving and did not care.
Unaccompanied Youth:Who? (cont)
• Many youth have been thrown out of their homes due to their sexual orientation• 20-40% of unaccompanied youth identify as
gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (compared to 3-5% of adults).
• Many youth have been thrown out of their homes due to pregnancy.• 10% of currently homeless female teenagers
are pregnant.
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Enrollment
• The McKinney-Vento Act requires immediate enrollment for homeless students, even without documents (proof of residency, immunizations, school records)
• The McKinney-Vento Act requires immediate enrollment even without a parent or guardian.• Youth self-enrollment• Caregiver enrollment
• School stability• Remain in school of origin despite moves
• If in student’s best interest, based on individualized assessment
• While homeless, and until end of academic year once permanently housed
• Transportation to school of origin• http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/
nche_transp_body.pdf
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Enrollment (cont)
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Enrollment (cont)
• Parental disapproval / School liability
• Liability is based on the concept of negligence, or a failure to exercise reasonable care.• Following federal law and providing appropriate
services are evidence of reasonable care.
• Violating federal law and denying services are evidence of negligence.
• Be reasonable based on the circumstances (school counselor, family mediation, CPS if necessary)
• Talk with the youth
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Enrollment (cont)
• Harboring / Kidnapping
• “Harboring”: Triggered by providing shelter or concealing a youth from a parent
• Don’t hide children from their parents
• Don’t provide ongoing shelter without contacting parent, police or CPS
• Check 1-800-THE-LOST or http://missingkids.com
• Running away as a status offense or “conduct indicating a need for supervision.”: So what?
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Enrollment (cont)
• Contacting police / CPS
• MV requires eliminating barriers to enrollment and retention in school.• Arrest, custody and foster care are threats and barriers to
unaccompanied youth.• Schools must enroll youth immediately. School is the
safest and best place for youth.• Educators are only mandated to report suspected abuse
and/or neglect (homelessness alone is not abuse/neglect) to child welfare.
• Build relationships with law enforcement, juvenile justice and local CPS.
• Immediate enrollment without documents:http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/
assessment.pdf
• Immediate enrollment without parent/guardian:http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/briefs/
guardianship.pdf
School Enrollment ResourcesSchool Enrollment Resources
Unaccompanied Youth: How?Engagement
• Schools can engage unaccompanied youth by making sure the students feel:• Welcome• Cared For• Productive
WelcomingUnaccompanied Youth
• Listen to youth. Work to build trust with them and understand that their life experiences with adults thus far likely give them no reason to trust you.
• Talk to youth about their goals, interests and strengths, and welcome them into classes and extracurricular activities based on what you hear from them.
• Work with local child welfare and law enforcement agencies to ensure that any requirements to report suspected abuse or neglect do not prevent youth from enrolling in school due to fears that they will be taken into custody.
Caring forUnaccompanied Youth
• Offer a peer mentor to help the youth get used to the school rules and culture.
• Provide a consistent adult mentor: could be the liaison or any adult in the school building.
• Provide a “safe place” at school for unaccompanied youth to access as needed.
• Stick with the youth, realizing that their life experience may lead them to test you.
Caring forUnaccompanied Youth (cont)
• Create clubs or programs to support groups of young people who tend to be over-represented among unaccompanied youth, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender, pregnant or parenting, older than traditional high school age, recovering from trauma, or recently returned to school after an extended period of nonattendance.
• Implement a system to check on youth’s attendance, behavior and grades on a regular basis and to hold the youth accountable. The system must be respectful yet firm, recognizing that it is likely that no other adult is monitoring the student.
• Full participation in school activities:http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/
briefs/extra_curr.pdf
• Ensuring credit accrual and recovery:http://center.serve.org/nche/downloads/
briefs/credit.pdf
Helping Unaccompanied YouthHelping Unaccompanied YouthFeel ProductiveFeel Productive
• Financial aid for college• Youth who meet the definition of “independent
student” can complete the FAFSA without parental income information or signature.
• Unaccompanied youth are automatically considered independent students.• Must be verified as unaccompanied and homeless
during the school year in which the application is submitted.
• Youth who are unaccompanied, at risk of homelessness, and self-supporting are also automatically considered independent students.• Must be verified in application year.
Helping Unaccompanied YouthHelping Unaccompanied YouthFeel Productive (cont)Feel Productive (cont)
• Financial aid for college
• Verification must be made by:• McKinney-Vento Act school district liaison,• HUD homeless assistance program director or their
designee,• Runaway and Homeless Youth Act program director or
their designee, or• Financial Aid Administrator
• 47,204 youth indicated homelessness on 2009-2010 FAFSA
• www.naehcy.org/higher_ed.html
Helping Unaccompanied YouthHelping Unaccompanied YouthFeel Productive (cont)Feel Productive (cont)
• 33,433 homeless children ages 3-5 (not kindergarten) were identified and enrolled in public preschool in 2008-2009.• Represents only 3.5% of students identified as
homeless by public schools.• Younger children are not counted.
• Head Start and Early Head Start served 38,918 homeless families in 2010 (roughly 3% of Head Start’s total enrollment).• Up from 31,808 in 2009 and 25,969 in 2008.
• In 2008-2009, 52% of all children in HUD homeless shelters were under the age of 6.
Preschool Children:Preschool Children:Where?Where?
• Identify the existing public preschool programs within your district: classrooms for 3, 4 and 5 year olds; preschool special education programs; other federally funded projects and community/district collaborations.
• Connect with those programs to build relationships, share data, and create awareness of the impact of homelessness on young children.
• Designate a “homeless contact” at each Head Start program in your community; make sure each contact is trained and hold regular meetings.
Preschool Children:Preschool Children:How?How?
• Advocate for slots for homeless children in preschool programs• Homelessness as criteria for priority enrollment• Homelessness as an “at risk” factor, and/or
"most in need.”• Hold slots open
• Explore funding support from Title I, Part A, and grants sources such as United Way.
Preschool Children:Preschool Children:How? (cont)How? (cont)
• Head Start homeless provisions• Homeless children are identified and prioritized
for enrollment• Homeless families can apply to, enroll in and
attend Head Start programs while required documents are obtained
• Head Start programs must coordinate with McKinney-Vento programs
• Homeless children are automatically eligible for Head Start
Preschool Children:Preschool Children:How? (cont)How? (cont)
• http://www.naehcy.org/early.html
• http://www.horizonsforhomelesschildren.org
• http://www.familyhomelessness.org
Preschool Children:Preschool Children:ResourcesResources
Unaccompanied Youth:Unaccompanied Youth:Your Turn to Decide “How”Your Turn to Decide “How”
• Work through the scenario in your group, briefly (15 minutes)
• Large group discussion (15 minutes)
• Final Check: Review the Pop Quiz!